The true story behind why Reneé Rapp left The Sex Lives of College Girls.

Reneé Rapp's announcement about her exit from The Sex Lives of College Girls was short and sweet, but we're still recovering from the news. 

In July 2023 it was announced that Rapp would not be returning as a main character for season three of the hit HBO Max show, and fans were devastated to hear such an iconic queer character would not be back on their screens. 

For the last two seasons, Rapp played the role of Leighton Murray, a wealthy student at Essex College who was coming to terms with her sexuality. 

While she won't be a series regular in season three, she will be appearing in some scenes of the third season in order to wrap up her storyline and explain her absence moving forward.

Rapp's decision to leave the series quickly followed on from the announcement she was going on an international tour for her music, something it seemed that did not align with the filming schedule for The Sex Lives of College Girls.

Watch the Season 3 trailer for Sex Lives Of College Girls here. Article continues after video.

Amidst all the rumours surrounding her abrupt exit, Rapp took to her Instagram to share her love for the iconic character she played.

"College girls moved me out to L.A. and introduced me to some of my favourite people. Two and a half years later — it's given me y'all and this community," she wrote.

"Thank u Mindy, Justin and everyone at Max for believing in me. A lot of queer work gets belittled — but playing Leighton has changed my life. I love who I am 10x more than I did before knowing her. I hope she gave y'all a little bit of that too. She's such a tiny part of representation but even the tiny parts count. I wouldn't be half the person I am without her and y'all. I love that bitch more than you know. I'm so excited for this season and I can't wait for you to see what we have coming for her and the girls."

The show's co-creator and producer, Mindy Kaling also posted a show of support on Instagram, following the departure announcement. 

"We love Renee so much and of course will be so sad to say goodbye Leighton Murray," she wrote, "But we can't wait to see our friend on tour."

In January 2024, when Rapp did an interview with Vanity Fair, she shared her reason for parting ways with the beloved show.

She wanted to focus on her music, which seemed to be the goal from the very beginning.

"[I thought], I can do music on the side, like, I can just hustle. And now I've just kept acting, because it keeps supporting the music… Acting was my way into tricking everyone that I warranted attention, so that I could have this interview with you," she said.

Pauline Chalamet, Alyah Chanelle Scott, Amrit Kaur and Renee Rapp attend the LA Premiere of 'The Sex Lives Of College Girls'. Image: Getty

She also spoke about how supportive her current work environment is, something she was not always accustomed to in the past.

She said, "The people in my life that I work with now care about me as a person. And I think that is a difference from things I've experienced in the past." 

It does beg the question, what was her experience like on the set of Sex Lives of College Girls?

Back in Season 1, Rapp admitted on the 'Call Her Daddy' podcast, that, "The first year doing Sex Lives of College Girls was terrible. It was terrible. It sucked so bad."

At the time, Rapp was referring to her very personal journey of coming to terms with her own sexuality while playing this character, given she is bisexual but was in a hetero-normative relationship at the time.

Pauline Chalamet, Renee Rapp and Alyah Chanelle Scott in Sex Lives of College Girls. Image: HBO Max

She also referred to the mostly male crew, who would often come up to her and ask whether she was actually gay or just acting.

"It made me second guess everything about myself," she said. "I felt like... to no one else's real fault, except for my childhood and formative years, I was beating myself up so much."

Rapp has also had a passion for music, previously starring in the stage version of Mean Girls, as well as the film adaptation in 2024.

Speaking about the experience of working with Tina Fey on the project, Rapp gushed to Vanity Fair, "A lot of people talk about lifting women up and being a fucking feminist. And behind the scenes, it's really not that. And I think that Tina is exactly as good of a person as she is hilarious and intelligent."

Reneé Rapp performs live on stage during day three of Reading Festival 2024. Image: Getty

While Rapp will not be returning as a series regular to The Sex Lives of College Girls, that doesn't mean that her character Leighton is disappearing from our lives altogether.

In an interview with Teen Vogue, the show's co-creator Justin Noble assured fans that there will be plenty of Leighton's story in season 3 across a handful of episodes. 

"[She] definitely still has some lessons and room to grow ahead of her. She'll be faced with a couple of big choices and she'll have to make a couple of big decisions in all aspects of her life." 

Feature image: HBO Max / Getty.